FAIRMONT, W.Va. — State Senator Joey Garcia (D-Marion, 13) plans to keep an open mind on Governor Patrick Morrisey’s recent plans related to the structure at the West Virginia Department of Transportation.
The Marion County senator discussed the recent announcement made by the governor on WAJR’s Talk of the Town, where Garcia said he intends to take a wait-and-see approach on reforms that range from administrative cuts to data-driven approaches to road maintenance. While being one of the few Democrats on a West Virginia legislative body, Garcia has expressed a desire to get more details on the proposed overhaul of the West Virginia Division of Highways that already saw a $25 million budget cut earlier this year.
“I’m just wondering what the governor is going to do with that,” said Garcia. “Now transparency is always great, but still, we still have a lot left to be seen on what his plan is.”
In Garcia’s view, the biggest issue related to Morrisey’s announcement stems from the lack of transparency on how the DOH overhaul will be handled. While aspects related to a shift towards local road maintenance while reviewing management levels of the entity were supported, the lack of details on how the changes would be implemented outside of expanded technology for cost and transparency management was not considered ideal. Especially if job cuts that could affect local operations start to come into play.
“He talked a little bit about bloated bureaucracy, or people, and potentially making cuts to jobs, you know, if that’s in Charleston, that’s one thing,” said Garcia. “If that’s in our districts, we don’t have enough people right now as it is.”
With an acknowledgement of a need to address issues related to DOH operations, Garcia hopes the approach will allow for more funds to be used for both local road maintenance and necessary growth projects. For Marion County and particularly Monongalia County, the Mountain State Senator pointed out the need for projects like the Harmony Grove Interchange and continued work on state highways to account for growing areas like Morgantown and parts of Fairmont, some of the few places in West Virginia with growing populations. Areas Garcia feels the North Central West Virginia region still needs consistent funding to support.
“We do need to look at secondary roads, certainly in our area,” said Garcia. “I feel like we’ve gotten the short end of the stick when it comes to how much investment we have making sure our roads are maintained, and that’s especially important in such a growing area.”
As the state waits for the details of Governor Morrisey’s overhaul to be officially released, Garcia looks to continue to talk with officials within the administration to see what the DOH reshaping will actually entail. This will include conversations with new Secretary of Transportation Todd Rumbaugh that will coincide with conversations with fellow legislators in the West Virginia Senate and the House of Delegates. With little to go on outside of goals to adjust administrative and operational costs, Garcia hopes to find out more about Morrissey’s plans for the DOH in the coming months.
“I don’t want to be too critical before I’ve been able to have more in-depth conversations,” said Garcia. “Either with the governor, the governor’s office, or really our local districts, about what that means for the roads we have here,”